Here, we investigate the effects of pH adjustment before heating milk on the textural properties of whey protein enriched yogurt. Whey protein enriched skim milk was adjusted to pH of 6.3, 6.7, and 7.1 followed by heating at 85 °C for 30 min. Yogurts prepared from milk heated at pH 6.7 showed remarkably higher G′ (storage modulus) values, water holding capacity and firmness compared to those prepared from unheated milk, or milk heated at pH 6.3 or 7.1. A relatively more compact protein network was observed in the yogurt made from milk heated at pH 6.7. Heating milk at pH 6.7 formed both whey protein‐associated casein micelles (WPA‐CM) and soluble whey protein/κ‐casein complexes (SWP‐CC), resulting in the presence of numerous aggregating particles, which was responsible for the firmer yogurt gel. Heating milk at pH 7.1 (mostly SWP‐CC) resulted in higher yogurt firmness than heating at pH 6.3 (mostly WPA‐CM). Practical applications Whey protein fortification and heating milk improve yogurt texture. However, different pH values of the milk before heating and whey protein fortification affect the properties of the yogurt. Variation of milk pH before heat treatment affects the degree of association between denatured whey proteins and casein micelles. As a result, inconsistencies occur in yogurt gel texture. This study showed that yogurt made from milk heated at pH 6.7 had increased firmness and water holding capacity compared with that when the milk was heated at pH 6.3 or 7.1. The pH of milk naturally changes slightly throughout the year, which in turn might affect yogurt firmness. Therefore, milk pH is an important parameter which needs to be adjusted to produce uniform quality yogurt to obtain a well‐accepted commercial product.

The objective of this work is to examine the effect of amylose–amylopectin ratios on physical, mechanical, and thermal properties of starch‐based bionanocomposite films. Starch sources with different amylose–amylopectin ratios (potato starch, 20:80; wheat starch, 25:75; corn starch, 28:72; and high‐amylose corn starch, 70:30) are blended with carboxyl methylcellulose (CMC) and sodium montmorillonite (Na‐MMT) to produce bionanocomposite films. Experimental results reveal that corn starch/CMC/nanoclay bionanocomposite films possess higher tensile strength, lower film solubility, lower water vapor permeability, and higher glass transition temperature due to molecular structure of amylose–amylopectin and their molecular space in corn starch, which help in strong interaction with CMC and extensive intercalation of nanoclay. The highest degree of crystallinity and strong interaction of corn starch with CMC (─OH and─COOH) and nanoclay (Si─O─Si and Al─OH) are confirmed by X‐ray diffractometer (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy results, respectively. The prepared bionanocomposite films can be used for food packaging applications to improve the shelf‐life and safety of food products, which can serve as a potential substitute for conventional plastic packaging materials.

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Two‐hundred and forty‐eight isolates of Rhizoctonia spp, were obtained from 13 locations in Gifu Prefecture in Japan using the plant debris particles isolation, colonization of bait tissue, and soil‐clump plating methods. Of the isolates, 143 were binucleate Rhizoctonia spp., 60 were R. solani and 45 were R. zeae. Three isolates of R. solani and 54 of binucleate Rhizoctonia spp, were hypovirulent on radish, whilst all isolates of R. zeae were highly virulent, Hypovirulent strains were isolated most frequently by the plant debris particles isolation method, Hypovirulent isolates of R. solani belonged to anastomosis group 4, whilst the hypovirulent binucleate Rhizoctonia isolates belonged to AG A, AG Ba, AG G, and AG O. Thirty‐two isolates of Rhizoctotria spp, selected for hypovirulence on radish were tested on cucumber in vitro. Only five binucleate Rhizoctonia isolates and one R. solani isolate were hypovirulent on both species, and these isolates were also hypovirulent on seven other crop species. Cucumber showed wide variation in disease susceptibility to different isolates but hypovirulent isolates exhibited a consistent reaction on five different host cultivars, Pathogenicity tests using cucumber grown in soil also showed consistent reactions with isolates selected either for hypovirulence or virulence. The results support the use of cucumber in bioassays for identifying hypovirulent isolates of binucleate Rhizoctonia spp.